Destiny, Written in the Stars
by KurayamiMitsukai
Summary: What happens when you are given the perfect chance to tell the one closest to your heart that you love them... will Lloyd blow his chance to tell that special someone how he feels? All reviews welcomed and greatly appreciated. Previous title: It's All in
1. A Cup of Hot Chocolate

Hey! Hari-Chan here. This is my first ever Tales of Symphonia fic! Forgive me if they are out of character or if the story isn't that great... I haven't written a story in about a year! Have you read Rin's story? It reminds me of how i got her into the game and how we stayed up untill 4am to beat Yuan... lol. Anyways, enjoy thestory and please review/ leave comments!

* * *

Lloyd walked into his room at the inn. He set down the twin blade, which he cherished so much against the wall. He sighed. Flanoir was a boring town – it snowed far too much for his liking. He sank into a cushy armchair and gave another sigh. He was exhausted from all the fighting he did with his friends before entering the town. Lloyd was about to drift off into a sleep when there was a knock on the door. Startled, Lloyd bolted upright. 

"Uh, Lloyd? May I come in?" said a female voice.

"Yeah… sure." Lloyd said sleepily. The blonde angel opened the door and came inside. She was holding a tray with two steaming mugs of hot chocolate. She smiled at Lloyd as she walked across the room and set the tray down on a table. The sweet aroma was now wafting through the room and was quite appealing.

"I thought you might be worn out from all those battles and brought you some hot chocolate!" She handed a mug to Lloyd.

"Thanks Colette," said Lloyd as he took the mug from her warm hands. He took a sip. "Did you make this yourself? It's delicious." He took another sip.

Colette blushed; full of bliss from the compliment she had just received. "Yeah, I did make it… just now." She herself took a mug from the tray and began to drink.

"What are the others doing?" asked Lloyd.

"I think that Zelos took Sheena somewhere, Raine went to look at the ice sculptures, Regal is in his room, Presea is in the lounge, and Genis is at the shop."

"I see…" He took another sip. The warmth of the hot drink rushed through his body and made him feel at ease and sleepy.

"You mind if I light the fire place?" asked Colette. "I think this room would be a lot more cheerful."

"If you want," said Lloyd. He watched Colette walk over to the log pile and stumble on a branch.

"Hehehe… I'm sorry." She picked herself up and started to brush the dust off her clothes.

_Clumsy as ever_, thought Lloyd as he laughed silently to himself. His fatigue was starting to catch up to him and soon, he was nodding off. Colette took the wood and placed it into the fireplace. Then, after finding a candle in the room, she lit the log. When she turned around, she noticed that Lloyd had drifted off to sleep with the mug still in his hand.

Colette smiled. _He must really be tired… he fought so bravely today. Sleep tight Lloyd_. She took the blanket off his bed and covered the sleeping swordsman, and tucked him in. Silently, Colette picked up the tray and her cup then slowly opened the door, making sure not to wake him and shutting it tightly behind her. As Colette walked down the hall, she started humming to herself.

* * *

Lloyd woke up in the middle of the night. In his hand was the half-finished mug of hot chocolate that Colette had made for him. _I had better take this back to the kitchen_, he thought. Lloyd stood up and walked into the hallway. In the kitchen, he dropped the mug in the sink. When he was about to go back to his room, he saw a shadow. Being curious, he followed it. 

As Colette was walking down the hall, she noticed that a shadow was following her. That only made her walk faster which made Lloyd walk faster as well. Soon, the two were walking so fast that Colette tripped and Lloyd tripped over her. "Owwww…."

Lloyd turned his lantern on. "Colette? What are you doing here?" He stood up and offered his hand to Colette who took it and helped her up.

"I couldn't sleep so I decided to go to the kitchen to get a snack… you?"

"I had to put my mug into the sink." Lloyd thought for a moment," If you can't sleep, would you like to go outside and look at the stars with me?"

"Yes! Of course!" Colette eagerly replied. She followed Lloyd to the roof of the inn.

"Well. Here we are!" exclaimed Lloyd.

"It's beautiful," whispered Colette as she gazed at the twinkling stars above her head. It was a clear night and the stars were extremely bright. The two of them walked over to a snow-covered bench and sat down. _It really is beautiful… I am so glad Lloyd invited me here._ Suddenly, Colette had a thought. "Is it just me, or do the stars seem to shine brighter in Tethe'alla than they do in Sylvarant?"

"Hmm?"

"I don't know… the stars just seem so much brighter here…"

"Maybe because this world is prospering," suggested Lloyd.

"Yeah… maybe you're right. I hope we can reunite the two worlds, I want the stars to be this bright everywhere!" Lloyd smiled. He looked into her deep blue eyes. Her gaze met his. Colette blushed and turned away. "You know… it's getting kind of late…"

"Uh, yeah … so it is. Um… I'm gonna go to bed alright?" As Lloyd turned to go back into the building, Colette gave him a hug. "Colette…."

She smiled at him. "Thanks for bringing me out here tonight… it really was pretty." And with that, the Chosen went down the stairs and into her room.

Lloyd yawned. _It really is getting late…_ he thought as he went down the stairs. Lloyd went to his room, lay down on his bed and was fast asleep.

_The sun was shining brightly overhead. Lloyd was in a flower meadow and Colette was sitting on a blanket beckoning to him. "I'm coming Colette!" Lloyd yelled as he ran across the meadow. The butterflies were everywhere and the flowers were in full bloom… the perfect place for a picnic. When Lloyd finally reached her, he sat down on the bright checkerboard blanket. Colette smiled at him, and Lloyd smiled back. The sun was reflecting off Colette's face, and made her look as if she were some sort of immortal; radiant and beautiful. Colette kept moving closer and closer to Lloyd until she was practically next to him. She gazed into his eyes and he gazed back. Lloyd couldn't pull away from Colette's eyes… those deep pools of blue that reflected hope. Before he knew it, he and Colette were sharing a passionate kiss. _

Lloyd woke up with a start. His breathing was heavy and he was panting. It wasn't so much that Lloyd didn't like Colette, but the thought of himself and Colette a couple made him think if their friendship was more than just a friendship… that it could be love. Lloyd shook his head and sat up. _Could it be that I really do like Colette? _

_

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_

So... how did you like it? I am currently working on my second chapter! Yay!

Hari-Chan


	2. A Day In Altamira

Hey everyone! It's me, Hari-Chan! I've finally updated my story (sorry it took so long!). This onetook me a whileto write, hope you like it!

I must give credit here in this space to my friend Rin! She gave me the idea and outline forthis chapter! Thanks!

* * *

As the sun rose higher and higher into the sky, it's rays pierced Colette's curtains and woke her up. She sat up and yawned. _Today is very nice outside_ Colette thought as she looked out the window. The birds were singing and there wasn't a cloud in sight… the perfect day for the amusement park in Altamira. _Perhaps Lloyd will want to go to Altamira with me!_ The thought excited Colette. She quickly got out of bed and dressed. Then, she walked out the door to find everyone except Lloyd outside eating breakfast. "Good morning everyone! Has anyone seen Lloyd?" Colette asked. 

"Good morning Colette. No one has seen Lloyd yet… probably still asleep," replied Genis. Meanwhile in Lloyd's room, the sun was shining directly on Lloyd's face but he didn't seem to mind. He just rolled over. But with every minute, the sun's rays were shining brighter and after half an hour, Lloyd couldn't take it anymore and woke up.

"What time is it?" Lloyd asked himself. He looked outside. "Oops… guess I overslept again." He pulled the covers off himself and got dressed. Then, Lloyd stepped out the door and walked outside. "Hey guys!" Lloyd said cheerfully as he looked at everyone.

"…You're late Lloyd," said Raine. "Honestly! Your always late for school as well!" Raine crossed her arms. Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Heh, sorry guys," Lloyd said, looking slightly embarrassed. Colette ran up to Lloyd.

"Good morning Lloyd," said Colette.

"Hey Colette. Good morning to you too." He smiled.

"Can I talk to you?" She looked around. "Alone?"

"Sure," Lloyd said slightly confused. The two of them walked back into the inn. "So, what's up?"

"Since today was so nice, I thought we could go to Altamira," Colette said.

"Yeah! I'd love too go with you. I'll go tell everyone to get ready!" As he walked towards the door, Colette stopped him.

"I meant just you and me Lloyd. Is that alright?"

"Of course! I would love to spend the day with you." Colette smiled and Lloyd smiled back. The two of them walked out the door and back outside into the sunlight.

As the two of them walked towards the rheiards, Sheena asked," Where are you two going?"

"Nowhere much," Colette said. "Just an errand." Then, the two of them took off, leaving a cloud of smog behind them.

"You know," Zelos began. "It's like their going on a date." He looked at Sheena with a funny look on his face.

"What? W-what do you want?" questioned Sheena as she started to back up.

"How would you like to double date?" Zelos began, advancing on her. "You know… with Lloyd and Colette?" He gave her a sly grin. All that earned him was an extremely loud and painful slap from Sheena.

"In your dreams!" Sheena turned her back on him. Zelos started rubbing his cheek, which had a huge red mark shaped like a hand on it that was throbbing.

"Sheesh… you could've just said no! Anyways, who wants to follow them? I wanna see what's going on between them." Zelos said.

"Wouldn't that be an invasion of Lloyd and Colette's personal business?" Raine inquired. "Still.. I would like to know more." She thought for a moment. "Okay! Count me in! Everyone who wants to spy on Colette and Lloyd, raise your hand!" Everyone raised their hand.

"Okay! It's settled by a unanimous vote! Off to Altamira!" Zelos was very excited now. He practically ran to the rheairds.

"Look!" Colette shouted. She was pointing to the huge multi-level hotel, which signaled to them that Altamira was directly below them. As both of them started to go lower and lower, Lloyd noticed that Altamira was indeed a perfect place to spend the day with Colette. Clear, blue water, warm beach, huge amusement park, sky gardens, and many shopping opportunities.

When they landed, they walked over to the Elemental railroad. A cheerful attendant was there to greet them. "Hello miss," the attendant said facing Colette. "Are you headed to the amusement park or the Lazereno Company?"

"To the amusement park," Lloyd said. The attendant held the door open for Lloyd and Colette as they got onto the boat. It was a fairly short ride, but Colette enjoyed every second of it. When they got off, they marveled at the sight. A huge roller coaster was looming overhead, happy children running around, tea cups rides, lots of food, and a huge ferris wheel. "What do you want to do first?"

Colette thought for a moment. "How about the tea cup ride?"

"Okay," Lloyd said as he took Colette over to the colorful, spinning cups.

* * *

"Zelos! Get your hands off me!" Sheena yelled in frustration. Zelos' hands retreated from Sheena's waist. Since Lloyd and Colette took two of the rehairds, Sheena was forced to share with Zelos. Genis sighed. 

_Are they always like this?_ Genis thought. He had to share a rehaird with Raine while Presea shared with Regal.

"How much further?" Sheena inquired, her voice full of impatience. She was tired of yelling at the Chosen who she thought was utterly useless.

"About 5 more minutes," Presea answered. The clouds were flying past as the rehairds were at full speed.

A couple minutes later: "There it is! Below!" Genis shouted. Everyone looked down to find the familiar sight of the towering hotel building and gorgeous beach. Everyone landed.

"Where are we going to find Lloyd and Colette?" Zelos asked.

"We can ask the attendant at the Elemental railroad. If the two went to the company or the park, the attendant will know," replied Regal. As they were walking towards the boat, Zelos disappeared.

"Hey! Where did Zelos go?" Sheena asked. Everyone looked around. "He's probably off flirting!"

"I think you're right Sheena," Raine said. "Look over there." Raine pointed near the hotel entrance. Sure enough, Zelos was standing there with some girl. Everyone watched him.

"Hey gorgeous!" Zelos shouted. A girl with long brown hair turned around.

"Are you referring to me, Chosen?" The girl replied. She had big brown eyes, a pretty smile, and was wearing a mini skirt (which was probably the thing that attracted Zelos' attention – besides the fact that she was female).

"Who else would I be talking to?" Zelos smiled – his white teeth gleaming. The girl giggled softly and blushed. Sheena had had enough.

"ZELOS!" Sheena yelled. Zelos spun around in time to see Sheena running up to him. Before Zelos could run away, Sheena had reached him, and grabbed a handful of his hair in her fist. "Honestly! Must you flirt with everything female?" She sighed as she dragged Zelos back to the group by his hair.

"My hair!" Zelos cried as he desperately tried to get the tangles out. "My long, silky red hair…"

"Serves you right for flirting in front of Sheena," Genis replied in response to Zelos' complaints.

"Anyway," Raine said with some annoyance in her tone," We should be finding out where Lloyd and Colette headed off to." The group headed towards the Elemental railroad. "Sir, could you tell me if you have seen a boy in a bright red outfit and a girl with long blonde hair?"

"A boy with a bright red outfit and a girl with long blonde hair?" The attendant paused for a moment and recalled his memories. "Ah yes! I do remember seeing two people like that. They headed to the amusement park. I could take you there if you like."

"Yes," Raine replied as everyone got into the small boat. In less than 3 minutes the whole group was standing outside the famous Altamira Amusement Park.

"Where do you presume Lloyd and Colette went?" questioned Presea. She looked around.

"I don't know but we had better start looking," replied Sheena.

"Let's try the food court!" Genis suggested," Lloyd is always hungry." Everyone walked over to the food court.

* * *

"Wow! That was fun!" cried Colette as she got out of the teacup. 

"Y-yeah," Lloyd said, holding his head. He was so dizzy that he walked right into the wall. Colette flinched then ran to him.

"LLOYD! Are you alright?" Colette helped Lloyd get up.

"I'm fine."

"You sure?" Colette said, her voice full of concern.

"Yeah…" Lloyd thought for a moment. _What should we do next?_ Lloyd noticed his stomach growling fiercely at him. In his excitement, he forgot to eat breakfast and was extremely hungry.

"Are you hungry, Lloyd?" inquired Colette as she laughed. Lloyd pat his stomach.

"Guess I am, I didn't get breakfast remember?"

"Okay then, why don't we go to the food court for lunch?" Colette suggested.

"Yeah, that would be a great idea." Lloyd smiled as he and Colette walked over to the where the tantalizing smells came from that was the food court.

"Where are they!" cried Sheena. They were at the food court but Lloyd and Colette were nowhere to be seen.

"Maybe they went somewhere else… or were never here at all," Presea said.

"Or maybe." Zelos began. "Or maybe they're right over there."

"Where?" Genis asked, hoping up and down.

"Riiiiiight over there." Zelos pointed to the small figures of Lloyd and Colette walking towards them.

Raine panicked. _What if they see us? What will they do then? What will I do?_ She collected her thoughts. "If Lloyd and Colette are coming this way, we should go somewhere out of sight, but somewhere we can still see them."

Everyone thought. "How about over there?" suggested Regal. He was referring to a shady area with a lot of green bushes and benches.

"Good idea. Everyone! Run over there!" commanded Sheena. Everyone ran as if something demanding their lives was after them. When they made it safely, everyone let out a sigh of relief and fixed their eyes on Lloyd and Colette.

Lloyd's stomach was now protesting louder than ever. He blushed, his stomach was making him look like a fool in front of Colette; or so he felt. "…sorry." He looked at Colette who just smiled.

"I don't mind. You didn't get breakfast. I can't blame you!" She heard Lloyd's protesting stomach. "…or your stomach!" The two of them laughed; then silence. Suddenly, Colette said:" What did you want to eat?"

"Huh? Oh uh… I dunno. Hot dogs? As long as it doesn't have tomatoes!"

"Sure! It doesn't matter what I eat because I get to spend the whole day with you!" Colette smiled.

* * *

"Awwwwwww!" cried Zelos. "Lloyd is really warming my little hunny up to him!" 

"Wasn't it obvious that they liked each other from the beginning?" said Genis. He looked at Zelos. "Honestly, you're kind of dense at times." Everyone was nodding his or her head vigorously.

"Hey!" Zelos cried.

"Shhhhhhhhhh! Be quiet, the both of you! If we make to much noise, we'll give our positions away!" Raine whispered. The two having not thought of the possibilities of being caught silenced themselves.

After they had eaten. Lloyd and Colette walked over to the Ferris wheel. "It's kind of big, don't you think?" asked Colette as she looked at the large, colorful wheel.

"Its not THAT big… wanna go ride it?" Lloyd grinned.

"Okay, let's get in line." Lloyd and Colette walked over to the small group of people waiting to get on the ride.

"NEXT!" cried the Ferris wheel operator. The line grew shorter and shorter and just before Lloyd was about to go through the gate… "Sorry young man. You'll have to wait another five minutes."

"Five minutes!" cried Lloyd. He had such little patience that five minutes could seem like an eternity.

"It's okay, Lloyd. Five minutes isn't that long of a time. We can talk some more."

Genis sighed. "Isn't it just like Lloyd to be so impatient?"

"Yes, of course," Raine replied. _He's been this impatient ever since he started school as a young boy! He also looses interest in things quite easily as well…_

"What do you think will happen next?" Presea asked.

"Who knows? That's why we gotta watch them all day!" cried Zelos as he thrust his fist into the air ad grinned.

"Clam down," said Sheena as she pulled Zelos down to the ground, with a loud THUMP. "Just be quiet and watch."

* * *

"NEXT!" the Ferris wheel operator bellowed. 

"Finally!" said Lloyd excitedly. He walked into the gate and got into the small, blue, container.

"I can hardly wait! People say that this Ferris wheel goes so high up, that you can see Flanoir from here!"

"Really? That would be so neat!" There was a sudden rumbling as the machine started up. Soon after the ride began, the container started wobbling to and fro scaring Colette a bit.

"Whoa…Lloyd, w-will this t-thing fall off it's hinges?"

"It shouldn't…"

"Is it okay if I… if I sit next to you?" Colette blushed as she spoke. Lloyd blinked.

"Yeah… okay." Colette held onto the side of the container and slowly made her way across to Lloyd's side. The ride stopped for a moment, which made Colette stumble and fall onto Lloyd's lap. She looked up and saw Lloyd looking down at her. "Here, let me help you up." He held out her hand to Colette and helped her stand up; then to sit down next to him. The sun was shinning brightly and even though the top of the container shrouded the windows in shadow, the sun somehow managed to send several beams through that caught Lloyd's eye. He looked to his left. The sun made Colette's hair shine and her eyes twinkle brighter than usual. He let out a small gasp. _Why am I seeing things like that? Somehow, Colette looks… different today. But why? Why am I seeing things?_ Colette looked at him.

"Are you okay, Lloyd?" He looked up.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm alright." He paused. "You look different today."

"I do?" Colette was very confused.

"What I meant was that you look prettier today…" Lloyd and Colette were both a bright shade of cherry red.

"Thanks, you look nice today too!" Colette smiled. Suddenly, they reached the very top. Colette gasped. "Isn't it beautiful? Just look!" Lloyd looked out the window. He was stunned; the sight was just so amazing. There was bright, blue, water, green trees, grass, small towns, villages, and furthest away was the small town of Flanoir. _Colette was right_…_you really could see Flanoir from up here!_ "It's like you can see the whole world of Tethe'alla from up here!"

"Yeah…" Then, the Ferris wheel slowly started to rotate as they were heading downwards, back onto the ground. It was almost sunset: the sun was going lower and lower in the sky, the clouds were beginning to look pink, and people were leaving the park. "It's getting late, we should go…"

"Is the day almost over already? I hadn't realized that… I was too busy having fun with you!" Colette's smile widened.

"We could go to the beach before we head back to the inn," Lloyd suggested slowly. Colette looked at Lloyd.

"Sure! The beach sounds like a great ending to a great, I mean perfect day." Colette grabbed Lloyd's hand, causing him to blush. "Come on!" Colette ran towards the beach with great speed, causing Lloyd to stumble and run clumsily.

* * *

"TO THE BEACH!" cried Zelos with his fist up in the air once again. Sheena sighed as Zelos started to run. 

"…Let's go," she said. Everyone started to walk to the beach while Zelos was seen as a small dot that was running.

* * *

The sun was completely set now, which disappointed Lloyd since he wanted to watch the sunset with Colette. He sighed. 

"What's the matter Lloyd?"

"Nothing."

"Okay then." The white sand was gleaming and reflecting the moonlight, causing both Lloyd and Colette to feel very relaxed. It was very quiet and still – the only traces of any humans (that is on the beach) was the footprints the couple left as they walked along the beach holding hands and smiling. As they walked, Colette noticed that there were many small seashells near the water, which gave her an idea. As they continued their walk, Colette stooped down every couple seconds to pick up a seashell. Lloyd was puzzled but didn't ask any questions. As Colette harvested her little treasures, Lloyd looked around and heard some noise coming from behind a rock. He stopped and listened more carefully and looked in the direction of the rock.

"Gah! He's looking at us!" cried Genis. "What do we do?" Everyone looked at the smartest member of the party, Raine. She put a finger to her lips and said,

"He might not know that we're here… as long as we don't make anymore noise." Her last comment was directed at Zelos and Sheena who were still arguing and glared at them.

"Here's a little tip guys," Genis whispered." Don't make Raine mad and you'll survive to see tomorrow." Genis smiled as he spoke.

"Yes, yes, very well," said Raine her voice with even more annoyance. "Just be quiet!" Everyone was silenced.

_The noise seemed to have disappeared_ Lloyd thought. _But I thought I could hear the voices of Genis and the Professor…_ He shook the thought out of his mind. _I'm supposed to be focusing on Colette! _"Hey Colette? What are you doing?" Lloyd questioned as he watched Colette gather seashells for the past half hour. Colette stood up and brushed the sand of her jacket and pants.

"I'm collecting seashells so that we can make a bracelet!" Lloyd grinned.

"You mean like a souvenir of the best day of my life?"

"….and of mine." Lloyd and Colette both blushed an even deeper shade of red. To keep himself from blushing even more, Lloyd began to collect seashells and Colette followed his action. Soon, between the two of them, they had over 60 small seashells. "You think we have too many?"

"Nah! After the bracelets we can keep the rest somewhere. Now… I need to drill holes in these, right?" Colette nodded. Lloyd took out a small knife from his pouch and began to drill holes in the small seashells while Colette began looking for string.

"Lloyd, I can't find any string…"

"Why don't you go buy some? It shouldn't be too far away if you fly…" He reached into his small pouch and pulled out 500 Gald, then put them into Colette's open hand.

"Okay! I won't take long!" Colette sprouted her shining wings and flew off into the night sky. Lloyd sat there drilling even more holes into the seashells. While Colette was flying towards the hotel, she saw some people hiding behind the rocks. Using her angelic vision, she peered even closer. _It's Raine!_ She looked even closer. _And Sheena! And Genis, Presea, Zelos, and Regal! What are they all doing here?_ Colette was puzzled but persisted on, knowing that Lloyd was waiting for her and depending on the string for their bracelets. So, she went in and bought a length of not string, but of pure gold. _Lloyd will be so happy when I show him this!_ And raced off to find Lloyd. When she arrived she was about to tell him what she saw but stopped. Lloyd had already finished drilling 30 seashells – more than enough for two bracelets. "Wow Lloyd, you're really fast."

"Well, I guess it pays off to have a dwarf for a dad!" The two of them laughed. "Where's the string, Colette?"

"Oh! The string. It's right here…" Colette pulled the dazzling gold chain that reflected the moonlight and out it into Lloyd's expecting hands.

"Colette… this chain is gold!"

"You like it?" Colette was full of joy because the chain she had bought gave Lloyd such joy.

"There's no way you could've bought this with the mere 500 Gald I gave you!"

"Well, I bought it with the money you gave me and some of my own."

"How much?"

"After the 500 Gald you gave me, it cost 8000 Gald and-"

"You dork! You didn't have to go and buy this! 8000 Gald is a lot of money!"

"But it was worth it, getting a gold chain for our seashell bracelets. I felt that since this night was so special, we might as well make it special." Colette blushed as she spoke.

"Well if you feel that way, I can't refuse it. I'll turn this gold chain and these seashells into the most beautiful bracelets there ever was!" He smiled at Colette. An hour later, Lloyd had finished the two bracelets and they were simply amazing: a single seashell polished to it's best was strung onto the chain with smaller pieces of shells dangling around it. Colette gasped.

"Lloyd! It's amazing! It's…it's beautiful." She slipped it on immediately. "Hehehe… a perfect fit too!" Lloyd was full of bliss from the compliment.

* * *

Meanwhile, the rest of the party who had been watching were touched. "Wow, Lloyd can be so romantic…" Sheena said. 

"I know!" replied Raine.

"It's kind of weird seeing him like this," said Genis. "We'd better get going, they might leave at any moment…"

"Good idea," said Presea. And with that, everyone walked back to the Rehairds.

"Lloyd? I don't want to spoil the moment of anything but I think we should get going… it's kind of late."

Lloyd yawned. "Yeah, we should." After Lloyd looked at Colette, he took her by the hand and led her to the center of the beach where he released the two rehairds from their little box.

"Can we um… ride together? On one rehaird instead of two?"

"Yeah, that's a great idea." Lloyd pulled his little box out and sucked the extra rehaird back in, and mounted. "Climb on!" He offered his hand to Colette and helped her climb on. Then, with a spectacle of slights, they soared off into the night sky.

"Can I tell you something?"

"Of course, you know you can tell me anything."

"While I was buying the chain, I saw everyone spying on us at the beach."

"…really? I thought they trusted us more." Lloyd's voice was full of hurt.

"Why don't we ask? I do feel bad about lying to them and keeping it – I mean keeping our little vacation a secret." Lloyd's tone changed right away.

"If you put it that way, we should go talk to them!" He smiled at Colette, who smiled back. With a slight push of a button, they were off and on their way into the inn.

* * *

"Hurry up and get inside!" Sheena commanded. Everyone rushed into the inn and took a seat in the main room. "Heh… just in time too, here they come!" Sheena ran to her seat. 

"Remember, we don't speak a word of what we saw to anyone, do I make myself clear?" Raine asked. Everyone nodded. At that moment, Lloyd and Colette came in through the door.

"Hey guys, how was your errand?" Zelos asked.

"It went great!" said Lloyd. "Now, tell me … did you guys have fun in Altamira all day?" Everyone was stunned; how could they have known! "Why did you spy on us?" Genis stood up.

"Why didn't you tell us? You know you can tell us anything…" Genis shouted.

"Even if it _was_ kind of obvious that you and Colette like each other," Zelos added. Lloyd and Colette blushed.

"Please, everyone… I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I-I don't why I didn't tell you guys, I am really very sorry," Colette apologized.

"And I'm really sorry too, I don't know why I wouldn't tell you guys, you're all my close friends!" Lloyd blurted out. _Hey… when did I start apologizing like this?_

"Everyone, Lloyd and Colette obviously are deeply and sincerely sorry for their actions," Raine began. "The right thing to do is to forgive them; besides… our actions weren't much better than theirs." Everyone agreed – Raine did have a point (she usually did).

"Everyone who is willing to forgive Lloyd and Colette, say I!" Genis shouted.

There was a unanimous cry of "I!" from everyone.

"It's getting late," Presea said. It really was getting late, the moon was starting to to rie higher and higher still into the night sky. And so, this segment of the story ends witheveryonegoing to bed, their friendsips even stronger than before, knowing that it could withstand any trial, and with Lloyd and Colette's friendship moving progressing and slowly but surely turning into everlasting love.

* * *

So... what did you think? I must apologize if the characters are slightly out of character (I'm not to great with that kinda thing but I try!). Chapter Three is coming up soon! Rin gave me an idea for chapter three (well, I came up with part of it). Genis and Lloyd have a cook-off! Who's gonna win and who will loose? (if this idea has been used before, sorry! I'll make it my own style).

Hari-Chan

PS: does anyone know the name of the "containers" on the Ferris wheels? You know, the little boxes you sit in? If you know, please tell me so that I can stop calling them "containers". Oh! And if you know the name of the box they put the rehairds and the boat in, let me know too!


	3. Zelos' Advice

Hello! I came up with this idea while walking home (plus a whole bunch of random thoughts that I just added in). Then, I scrunched up those ideas into what I would like to call chapter three of It's All In The Stars! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia

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Lloyd walked down the hallway of the inn the party was staying at. A flash of red caught the swordsman's attention and he looked up to see Zelos walking around the corner. Something else caught his eyes – a bright _pink_ object. Curious as to what the strangely bright pink object was and what Zelos could be doing with it, Lloyd bent over and picked it up. _How To Woo The Hunnies – A Guide to Getting All the Girls By: The Chosen, Zelos Wilder_. Lloyd started in disbelief. _What kind of book could Zelos possibly be making! …I guess I had better give this back to him_, Lloyd thought as he walked down the hall. Lloyd kept walking until he reached the large lounge where Zelos, surrounded by at least 7 girls was sitting. "Uh hey, Zelos? Can I ask you something?"

"Hey Lloyd. Sure, ask away," Zelos replied.

"I meant in uh…in private," Lloyd said directing this comment to the cluster of girls surrounding Zelos.

"M'kay. Sorry ladies, but the great Zelos Wilder has some business he must attend to," Zelos said as he rose from his seat, completely ignoring the cries of protest that was coming from the girls. "Let's go back to my room, Lloyd." Lloyd followed Zelos back to his room. Once inside, Zelos asked Lloyd:" So, what do you want?"

"This may sound kind of awkward, but I," began Lloyd looking down at the pink book in his hands. "I wanted to ask you how to uh… um, get girls to l-like you." Lloyd was now a deep shade of red. Zelos blinked.

"Well! Thanks for asking the great Zelos Wilder! You have made he right decision! But, why is it that you ask? …Besides the obvious reason," Zelos added quickly.

"Well…" Lloyd began looking down at Zelos' book," I found this and uh.." He handed the book to Zelos. Zelos stared at his book and took it,

"This thing? Uh I was, um well…" Zelos stammered looking embarrassed.

"No! I meant that I saw your book and I was hoping you could help me with Colette… I want her to notice me!" Lloyd shrunk back into his seat.

_How dumb can you get Lloyd? Can't you tell Colette already digs you?_ As tempting as it was to say what he thought, Zelos decided to hold back and keep it to himself. "Sure Lloyd, I'll help you. First off, you have to impress her."

"Impress her? You mean like be a show-off? I don't think Colette really likes show-offs…"

"No! I meant that you should do something so great that Colette will notice you! Show her something that will prove you're the best! …Second best to me though."

"Heh… as if that'll get Colette's attention," a voice said. Lloyd looked towards the open door to find Sheena standing there, an amused expression on her face. Lloyd turned red.

_Had she heard everything I said? What if she tells Colette?_ "Hey Sheena," Lloyd said, forcing a smile. "How much did you hear?"

"Enough…but don't worry!" Sheena added after seeing the shocked expression on Lloyd's face. "I can help you with your 'Colette Problem'. That is, if you want me too."

"R-really?" Lloyd asked.

"Of course, you're my friend, and friends have to help friends. You see, girls like romantic dates. So, take Colette out on a romantic dinner and then, when the mood's right, tell her how you feel! " Sheena said.

"Nah! That won't work! You have to impress Colette! Lloyd has to show her what a man he really is!" Zelos blurted out. "The ladies love a tough guy!"

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW, STUPID CHOSEN?" Sheena yelled.

"I know tons!" Zelos replied, now standing to meet Sheena's gaze. Lloyd looked up. He suddenly had a spine-chilling feeling, as if something bad would happen – something that would put his safety on the line. Lloyd was right. As he looked up, he could see hot sparks flying between Sheena and Zelos' eyes.

Lloyd, fearing for the safety of his well-being, got up. "Thanks for the advice guys! Really! I think your both right!" Lloyd began to slowly back up.

"Lloyd?" Sheena began, her face contorted with rage.

"Yes Sheena?" Lloyd asked.

"I suggest you get out of the room, this may get ugly." Sheena said as she looked at Zelos, who began backing into the corner. Knowing better than to make Sheena even more furious than she was already was, Lloyd quickly walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Sheena's voice could be heard coming from the inside. He began to walk away from the door as soon as he heard several loud crashing noises, suggesting that Sheena had begun clobbering Zelos. As he backed up, Lloyd bumped into someone behind him. "Sorry," Lloyd said as he turned around. He gasped, it was Colette!

"Hi Lloyd!" Colette said as she smiled at her best friend.

"H-hey Colette! I was just looking for you."

"Really? You were?" Colette questioned. Colette had been longing to have a talk with Lloyd ever since her night with him in Altamira. Looking down at Lloyd's exposed wrist, Colette saw something that was gold and shone brightly. "Hey! You still have the bracelet that we made together on the beach!" Colette exclaimed as she pulled back her sleeves to reveal a bracelet almost identical to Lloyd's.

"How could I ever loose it? This bracelet is the souvenir of one of the greatest nights of my life!" Lloyd said while looking down fondly at his bracelet. Suddenly remembering Sheena's advice, Lloyd looked up and opened his mouth to ask Colette to go out for dinner with him when something red and pink flew past their legs and landed on the wall opposite them with a loud crashing sound. The red and pink object turned out to be Zelos who was thrown into the wall by Sheena, who stormed off towards the main door.

"Zelos! Are you okay?" Colette questioned, her voice full of concern as she went to help Zelos up. Struggling under Zelos' weight (not that he was really heavy or anything but he is heavy for one person to carry alone), Colette signaled to Lloyd, who rushed over to help drag Zelos towards his room.

"Ouch! Hey! That burns!" was the pitiful cries of Zelos as Raine tried to apply some antiseptic ointment onto his scrapes and cuts.

"Hold still!" Raine said as she struggled to bandage all of his wounds and apply ointment onto the open ones. However, Zelos would not stop struggling and Raine was out of patience. Lloyd winced as Raine smacked Zelos on the head to quiet him so that she could finish her job. When Raine did manage to finish, she stood up and said. "Now Zelos, how did you manage to get all of these wounds?"

"Professor, do you really want to know?" Lloyd said as he stood up and stood next to Raine. "To make matters simple, Zelos angered Sheena and she beat him, then threw him out the door and into the wall where we 'found' him and dragged him back here."

"Hey! Don't I get a say in the matter?" Zelos protested. Everyone but Colette glared at him, which caused him to be silent once more.

"Well, I have to go help Genis cook dinner now," Colette said as she rose from her seat and headed towards the door. "I'll see you all again at dinner time." Everyone waved goodbye as the angelic girl walked out the door.

"Yes, with that being said I have some research I must continue." Without another word after her statement, Raine walked out the door and to her room.

When all was silent and Zelos was sure that no one was around, he asked Lloyd," Did you challenge Genis to a cooking competition yet?" Lloyd looked at Zelos, dumbfounded.

"A cooking competition? You never said anything about that!" Lloyd cried.

"Well, you want to impress Colette right?" Lloyd nodded. "Then challenge him already! Everyone knows that Genis is the best cook among us and beating him in a competition will show Colette that you're something else!"

"But why cooking?"

"Well, the ladies love a man who can cook! So, you'd better challenge him tonight while everyone's eating dinner or else!" Zelos cried. Lloyd sighed as he walked out the door, thinking about the task at hand.

* * *

Later that night at dinner when everyone was at the table, Lloyd began to think about how he was going to challenge the best cook in the party to a cook-off when he could barely make himself a sandwich. Lloyd began to think of ways to challenge Genis, but all ended with negative thoughts. He sighed. Colette who noticed the sigh asked," Lloyd, are you al right? You haven't touched your food and you've been sighing a lot."

"I was just thinking about something," Lloyd replied in a casual tone that made Colette suspicious. She had known him since her early childhood and knew that when Lloyd spoke in a casual tone, something was wrong. "Please Lloyd, tell me what's on your mind!" she eagerly asked.

"Well," Lloyd began as he summoned up his courage (normally Lloyd wouldn't need to but it is related to Colette, so I think that he'd need to),"I challenge Genis to a cook-off!" He suddenly blurt out. The once noisy room went silent as everyone stared at Lloyd.

"Lloyd, what's that supposed to mean?" Genis asked, clearly puzzled.

"I think that _I _know," Zelos said, a smug grin on his face.

"I challenge you to a cook-off… tomorrow!" Lloyd cried. _Man, what am I thinking? Have I gone crazy? I just challenged Genis to a cook-off!_

"I guess I accept Lloyd," Genis replied, shocked at the thought that Lloyd would challenge him to something like cooking.

"Lloyd, what's gotten into you?" Sheena questioned. Lloyd's behavior was suddenly very odd and most unlike him. At that moment, a thought struck Sheena and she smiled. _That must be it… Lloyd is listening to Zelos' advice and is challenging Genis! Yes!_ Sheena's facial expression suddenly changed from a smile to a look of despair. _Wait a minute; Lloyd actually listened to Zelos' advice? What an idiot! …and I thought that Lloyd knew better than to listen to a dope like him._ Sheena slapped her forehead.

"Something wrong, Sheena?" Presea asked.

Looking up, Sheena replied, "It's nothing. Really. I'm gonna go to my room now." Sheena then stood up and left the room without another sound.

* * *

As Lloyd was about to go to bed, he had a sudden thought. How was he going t beat Genis if he couldn't cook and didn't know any recipes? He sighed. _I know! I'll go ask the Professor and see if she has any recipe books! _Lloyd, satisfied with the thought, got up and went to Raine and Genis' room. As Lloyd began walking through the dim hallway, he saw that there was still a light coming from the Sages' room. _Heh, Raine must still be studying or researching something_. Ignoring the fact, Lloyd turned his hand into a fist and began to knock on the door, which startled Raine.

"I wonder what it is now," Raine wondered out loud as she got up and opened the door. "Lloyd, what are you doing here this late at night? Shouldn't you be in bed?"

"Well, I was just wondering if you and any recipe books." At the word books, Raine's eyes lit up.

"Is it possible that you actually want to read a book for enjoyment?" Raine blurted out, completely ignoring the word _recipe_ that Lloyd uttered out of his mouth before the word _book_.

"No, you misunderstood! I meant that I want a recipe book, not a plain boring book!" Lloyd's reply was a mistake the moment his lips formed the word "no". Hearing that Lloyd didn't want to read and that he thought books were boring set Raine's eyes ablaze.

"How dare you insult books!" Raine cried as she flung her hand out dangerously towards Lloyd's head. Luckily for Lloyd, he had quick reflexes and was able to dodge the blow but saying that he was lucky would be inaccurate; because before Lloyd knew it, Raine had struck him with her foot, which caused him to hit the wall.

"Ow!" Lloyd said as he began rubbing the back of his head. Using the wall as his support, he slowly got up and was able to ask: "So do you have a cookbook or not?"

"Oh, why didn't you just say so Lloyd?" Raine said as she smiled politely. "There's one in my bag!" Raine walked over to her bag and pulled out a large, dusty cookbook and handed it to Lloyd.

"Thanks Professor!" Lloyd said happily as he began walking back down the hallway and into his own room. "Heh, I am gonna win for sure now!" Lloyd said as he began flipping through the pages.

* * *

As the sun rose higher and higher into the sky, the youngest Sage woke up. He sat up in bed and yawned, observing his surroundings. _Raine is still asleep_ Genis thought to himself as he got out of bed and put on his usual outfit. Sighing, he walked towards the door and opened it, careful to not make too much noise because waking Raine up under any circumstances was suicide. Genis began to walk to the kitchen when he noticed that Lloyd was sitting at the table, asleep. _This'll be fun_. Taking advantage of the fact that Lloyd wasn't the world's lightest sleeper, he began to squeeze mustard into Lloyd's hair, forming the shape of a smiley face. Genis began to laugh, which woke Lloyd up.

"Wha?" Lloyd asked sleepily. "What time is it?"

"…it's about 7:00am Lloyd," Genis replied coolly. "I'm about to start breakfast, can you wipe the drool you left off the counter?" Looking embarrassed, Lloyd quickly grabbed a paper towel and began to clean up the small puddle. Suddenly, Genis had a thought and asked," Lloyd, why are you challenging me to a cook-off?"

"Well…" Lloyd began as he started to blush. "I wanted to impress Colette." As he spoke, his voice began to diminish and was soon barely audible.

"What? Can you speak up Lloyd? Your voice is really quiet… let me guess. It's about Colette, isn't it?" Genis now had a grin on his face as he stared at Lloyd.

"Wh-what?" Lloyd said, taken aback. He was sure that no one heard the last part he said about Colette. "Well, I…"

"It's no big deal Lloyd." Genis smiled. _Well duh. Everyone already knows that Lloyd and Colette have feelings for each other. Maybe… everyone but themselves._ "Lloyd, you still didn't answer my question – why do you want to beat me so badly in cooking?"

"I told you." Lloyd began. "It's a secret! But, promise me one thing," he said suddenly dead serious.

"Of course Lloyd!" Genis said.

"Promise me that… promise me that you'll do your best. I want to beat you at your best!" Lloyd cried, smiling. Genis smiled and nodded.

"Okay then, I promise to beat you this afternoon!"

"Hey!" The two boys began laughing as they threw flour that they found in the cabinets at each other. Just at that moment, Raine stepped in.

"Is that," Raine began pointing to the white power all over the floor. "Is that the expensive flour I bought for our breakfast?" The two looked up from their flour fight at Raine, whose face was beginning to turn a violent shade of red. They watched as her eyebrows began to twitch and as her hand curled into a fist and began to shake.

"I think I hear Colette calling me and…" Lloyd began as he stood up.

"You're not going anywhere!" Raine shouted, her rage out of control now. She pulled her sleeves up, prepared to deliver her style of punishment (which is really quite painful).

"No…please! Professor, don't!" were the pitiful cries of Lloyd and Genis as they began backing up to the wall. Just next-door Sheena was asleep, a smile on her face. But a moment later, screams and bangs could be heard which woke her up.

"What?" Sheena asked herself out loud, startled. Hearing the screams and noise coming from the kitchen, Sheena sighed. _It must be Raine again._ Getting out of bed, she slipped her shoes on and stepped outside. "Hey guys." Everyone looked up at Sheena.

"Thank goodness!" Lloyd cried as he ran up to Sheena. Then in a barely audible voice, Lloyd said," Thanks for saving me. The Professor is crazy!" Smiling, Lloyd bolted out the door.

"Hey! Wait a minute! I'm not done with you yet!" Raine cried as her gaze followed Lloyd out the door. Seizing his chance, Genis got up and ran out the door, seeking freedom. Raine sighed.

"Lost them again, did you?" Sheena questioned. Raine stood up.

"Yes, but I suppose it's alright."

"What were you punishing them for anyway?"

"Oh that, they used my very expensive flour for a flour fight and well… I was using my authority and right as an adult to punish them."

"…More like abusing your authority and rights," Sheena said under her breath as Raine walked out of the room.

* * *

Later that afternoon at around three, everyone gathered in the kitchen. Zelos, who took it upon himself to be the announcer stood up. "Good afternoon everyone!" Zelos cried. The party responded with a cold glare. Ignoring the glares, Zelos pressed on. "As you know, today is a special day. Today, Lloyd and Genis are going to have a cook-off!" Zelos paused, expecting some applause – but there was none. At that moment, Genis and Lloyd came through the door and walked to their appropriate places. "Each contestant has his own side of the kitchen and a number of ingredients. The two will have to utilize their ingredients to make a delicious dish that will win the judges over and declare them the winner!" Zelos sighed. "Let's just skip the intros and get to the competition!"

"You're gonna loose Genis," Lloyd said as he began to grin.

"I'm not the one who's gonna loose, LLOYD!" Genis shouted as he too broke into a grin.

"Let the competition begin!" Zelos shouted, banging a pot and pan together because he didn't have a gun he could shoot into the air. Immediately, the two competitors began clambering all over their side of the kitchen, searching for pots, pans, utensils, and their ingredients.

"Let's see…" Lloyd said to himself as he began to inspect his ingredients. While he was searching, his eyes wandered over to something red and round. Curious, Lloyd picked up the red object and threw it back onto the counter. "Whose idea was it to put tomatoes down as an ingredient!" Lloyd angrily shouted. Looking over the faces of his friends in the audience, Lloyd saw that Zelos' grin was a little _too_ wide. Frustrated at the thought that Zelos had put tomatoes as an ingredient knowing that Lloyd simply detested them, he picked up a tomato and threw it in his face.

"Owwww!" Zelos cried, his hands covering his face. "The tomato juice stings! It burns! It BURNS!" Zelos continued to scream and run in circles until he crashed into the wall and lay unconscious on the ground, his face still covered in tomato chunks and juice. There was an eerie silence as everyone stared at Zelos.

"Well… that takes care of Zelos!" Sheena cried happily. Everyone nodded in agreement and the cook-off resumed.

"What can I make with eggs, a tomato, and green onions?" Lloyd cried out in frustration. Suddenly, an idea popped into his head, which did not occur very often. Then, Lloyd's eyes just so happened to "wander" over to Genis' side of the kitchen. On the other side of the kitchen, the young half-elf had already begun utilizing his ingredients – his onions were already diced, the eggs were already beaten, and was starting on the tomatoes. _Maybe I should…copy his idea_. Lloyd began to crack his eggs into an empty bowl. However, Lloyd had never cracked an egg before and left small fragments of pearly white eggshells in the bowl. Next, he picked up the green onions and began to chop them. Noticing how quickly Genis could dice his onions, Lloyd tried to mimic his actions… rather unsuccessfully. Sheena slapped her forehead with her open palm.

"Lloyd is so careless!" Sheena cried as she kept her eyes on Lloyd; who by the way cut his fingers and was now screaming in pain.

Worried, Colette stood up and shouted: "Lloyd! Are you okay! I'm going to get you some band-aids!" Suddenly, Zelos began to stir and sat up slightly. Unaware of this, Colette continued to run towards the door, tripped over Zelos, and fell over. When Colette tripped over Zelos, her legs fell on top of Zelos' head and caused him to once again, become uncurious. Raine sighed.

"I would assume that today was a bad day to have a cook-off?" Presea said, smiling. "Everyone seems to be having some sort of bad luck… everyone that is, except Genis." The small axe wielder was correct – Genis was now putting his eggs into a large frying pan and was well on track (much unlike Lloyd, Zelos, and Colette). Regal laughed silently to himself at Presea's joke. Like a sudden bolt of lightning, Colette jumped up and ran off towards Raine's room in search of the first aid kit that Lloyd so desperately needed (for he was still clutching his wounded fingers and was running around screaming).

"Almost done!" Genis said out loud to himself. His eggs were completely cooked on one side so he added his diced tomatoes, onions, and a couple pinches of salt and pepper. Next, Genis folded his egg over the newly added ingredients to make a semi-circle. Content with the way the competition was going, Genis began to whistle.

"Where is it?" Colette cried. "Where did Professor Raine put that first aid kit?" Desperately, Colette began to tear Raine's room apart until "Found it!" Clutching the first aid kit in her arms as if it were some priceless treasure, Colette ran out of the room to the kitchen where the kit was needed. Upon arriving, Colette (being the klutz that she is) tripped over Zelos again, causing the kit to fly out of her arms. "NO!" Colette screamed. Raine, Sheena, Regal, and Presea watched with some sort of sick obsession as the first aid kit flew through the air.

"This can't be good," Regal concluded. Presea stared at him.

"How so? Please explain," Raine said obviously interested.

"Well, the first aid kit is flying directly towards Lloyd and –". Regal didn't get a chance to finish his 'observation' for there was a loud THUD! The first aid kit was flying in Lloyd's direction and unfortunately for Lloyd, had hit him directly on his head. Genis however, had just finished his dish and was now placing it on a plate. Scrambling to her feet once again, Colette ran over to her dear friend.

"Lloyd! Lloyd, are you okay?" Colette said, her voice full of concern and worry.

"Don't worry Colette," Raine said as she walked over. "Genis, the competition is over, and judging by what Lloyd has made, you are the winner."

"That's great and all," Genis began," But Lloyd is more important than any cooking competition…" Raine smiled at the maturity that her younger brother was showing.

"In any case," Sheena added, "We should get Lloyd back to his room as soon as possible and treat his numerous injuries." Motioning to Regal and Presea, the four of them moved Lloyd to his room and set him down on his bed. With skill and precision, Raine had all of Lloyd's injuries bandaged in no time at all. He was however; still unconscious which made Colette worry.

Seeing the worried look on Colette's face, Raine said:" Don't worry Colette, Lloyd's going to be fine. Why don't I just leave you here with him so you will know when he wakes up?" Colette nodded, tears threatening to pour out of her blue eyes. Raine smiled at Colette, and then left the room.

Once alone, Colette burst into tears. "I am so sorry Lloyd! I'm such a klutz…" Colette knew that the first aid kit incident was only an accident but that did not stop her from feeling responsible for Lloyd's condition.

Just outside, Sheena and Raine were listening. "She really does care about Lloyd," Sheena whispered.

"Yes," Raine replied. "You should have seen them when they were young children."

"Really? Can you tell me the story some day?"

"Yes of course… someday. But for now, we should leave the young lovers to themselves."

"I guess so…" Sheena said. As she followed Raine outside, she couldn't help but look over her shoulder every couple seconds at the room where Colette and Lloyd were.

"Lloyd looks… so peaceful," Colette whispered to herself. Normally, he always had a grin on his face or on certain occasions was dead serious. Colette extended her arm out to Lloyd, but quickly pulled it back in. Gathering up her courage, Colette stretched her hand out all the way and began to stroke Lloyd's hair ever so gently. A smiled escaped her lips as she sighed: "Lloyd, get better soon." Suddenly, Lloyd groaned causing Colette to pull her arm back rather quickly. His eyes fluttered open and smiled. Unable to help it, Colette threw herself upon Lloyd and gave him a fierce hug. Surprised by the sudden action, Lloyd sat up. "Oh Lloyd! I was so worried! I was afraid that I had hurt you! I was afraid…" Lloyd smiled.

"You dork! As if something like that could really hurt me." The truth was in fact that Lloyd was deeply touched by the fact that Colette had been so worried about him and began to blush. Noticing that Lloyd was blushing, Colette immediately cut the embrace short and sat back in her chair. For the longest time, there was an awkward silence between the two. Perhaps it was because Colette had hugged Lloyd so suddenly or because they were both blushing; but whatever the reason was, Lloyd decided that the silence had to end. He gently raised his hand to Colette's face and wiped her tears away – an action which surprised her.

"L-Lloyd?" Colette asked, obviously startled. Lloyd smiled.

"Hey, how would you like to go out to dinner with me? Tomorrow night?" Lloyd cautiously asked. It wasn't so much that he was afraid of the question, but rather he was afraid of Colette's answer.

"Yes," Colette answered. "Of course I'll go with you!"

* * *

So, how did you guys like it? I apologize if any character was OC. Thank you for reading.

Hari

PS - I would really appreciate it if you would rate and review!


	4. Snowy Peril

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for the reviews! I'm sorry it took so long to update - finals were coming!

ANYWAYS, please enjoy chapter 4 of It's All in the Stars.

-Hari

* * *

Raine looked up from her book and saw Lloyd fretfully sitting in a chair. Raine watched, clearly fascinated by the boy's behavior – he couldn't sit still and was wiggling in his chair one minute, tapping his fingers on the chair the next, blinking rapidly seconds later, and then starting the process all over again. At first, it was quite amusing to watch, but after a while, the act became irritating. "Lloyd!" Raine yelled. Startled by the sudden noise, Lloyd jumped up.

"Wh-what?" Lloyd stammered, clearly confused.

"You've been acting quite strange." Then, Raine said quietly to herself," Not much stranger than usual, but still."

"I'm waiting for Colette to come back!" Lloyd suddenly blurted out. Raine eyed the young swordsman. "She went out with Sheena and Presea to the hot springs, and to get Genis some medicine… and then I saw Zelos walking around the main entrance as if he was going to commit a terrible deed." Lloyd sat still, deep in thought.

_What's there to think about?_ Raine thought. _A pervert following some girls to a hot spring? Obviously something bad is going to happen._ As tempted as she was, Raine kept her mouth shut – she wanted to see if her student could figure this one out on his own. The seconds turned into a minute; the minute soon turned into 20. Raine had had enough. _As magnificent as teaching is… Lloyd makes me actually consider another career_. She rose out of her chair and headed towards the door.

"Professor!" Lloyd cried out as he saw Raine heading for the door. "Where are you going?" Raine glared at him with one of her it's-none-of-your-business looks and walked away. "…I only wanted to know where she was going." Before Lloyd could concentrate further on his thoughts, a loud sneeze could be heard echoing through the hallway. _It must be Genis…_ Lloyd thought as he walked over to the first room in the hallway.

The young half-elf boy looked terrible. He was sitting up in his bed surrounded by a sea of used tissues. Genis looked up from his sneeze and found Lloyd standing at the foot of his bed. "Hey Lloyd," Genis barely managed to say as he was holding in another cough. Suddenly, Genis' face wrinkled up and he was thrown into a coughing fit. Lloyd rushed to his friend's side and began to pat his back. Lloyd didn't know what patting people on the back did when they were coughing, but he had seen Raine doing the exact same thing a couple times earlier that day. Suddenly the coughing ceased and Genis settled back between the blankets and the mattress. At that moment, the door burst open and angry shouts could be heard emitting from the open door.

"YOU PERVERT!" a voice yelled.

"But Sheena!" was the pitiful cries of Zelos. Unable to contain his curiosity any longer, the young swordsman cautiously peeked out of the doorway, but what he saw wasn't exactly the prettiest sight – Raine and Sheena clobbering Zelos… _together_. Lloyd winced, he knew how much pain the Professor's punishments could bring.

_Oh well_… thought Lloyd as he walked back to Genis' bedside and took a seat on the chair.

"What's going on?" Genis asked.

"It's nothing… Zelos was simply being a pervert again, I think," answered Lloyd. A moment later, Colette appeared at the doorway, smiling her usual bubbly smile.

"Genis, I brought your medicine," Colette announced as she walked in through the door and placed the brown bag on the small table near the bed. She slowly took out the bottle, unscrewed the cap and carefully poured the liquid into a spoon. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, the red liquid in a puddle around her feet. "I'm sorry!" she cried as she began to clean it up. "I'm so sorry!" Lloyd smiled.

"It's not your fault," Lloyd said trying to reassure her. "The bottle's slippery." He bent down and began to clean the medicine up.

"There!" Colette cheerfully announced. "It's all clean." She paused for a moment, wondering what to do next, then headed for the door.

"Where are you going Colette?" Genis asked, holding a tissue up to his nose.

"I dropped all of your medicine so I have to go buy some more." Noticing that this was a chance to spend time with Colette, Lloyd bolted up and blocked the path to the door. "Lloyd?"

"Maybe I should go with you!" Lloyd blurted out. "It could be dangerous after all…it's getting late."

"Lloyd, it's only 3:00 in the _afternoon_," Genis retorted.

"Well… I uh," Lloyd stammered. He had thought of the part where he would ask to go with Colette, but not the part where he would explain _why_ he wanted to go with her.

"It's okay, Lloyd can come with me… I'd appreciate the company." Relieved that Colette understood his intentions and allowed him to ho with her, Lloyd smiled and followed Colette out the door.

"So, where is this medicine?" Lloyd asked as the two of them stepped onto the porch of the inn they were staying at.

"Flanoir," Colette simply replied.

"It's that far?" Lloyd wondered out loud. "We should probably take the rheairds then." Colette nodded as the two made their way to the back of the inn where the rheairds were being parked. "Which one are we taking?"

"Well, two of them are being used by Regal and Presea so there are two left." Colette suddenly flashed a smile, hoping that Lloyd would catch her drift.

"You wanna, share?" Lloyd cautiously asked. He wasn't quite sure if Colette had intended to share, but he felt that he should go for it. Colette nodded, a small hint of red painted on her cheeks. Lloyd smiled as he helped Colette board the rheaird. The air rapidly sped around them and it seemed as if time had actually stopped and before long, they had arrived at the snowy city that was known as Flanoir.

"Lloyd? Aren't you going to get cold?" Colette questioned as she placed her feet on the crisp snow, shivering slightly.

"I might, but it looks like you need the warmth more than I do." As he spoke, Lloyd began to unbutton his bright red shirt, revealing another red long-sleeved shirt inside – which was still quite thin. After the jacket was completely off, he walked over to Colette and wrapped the bright red article of clothing around the angel's shoulders, causing her to blush.

"Lloyd! I can't, you'll get cold," Colette began before Lloyd placed a finger to her lips, silencing her.

"Not another word, okay? I don't want you getting sick, now let's go get that medicine." Colette was shocked – did Lloyd really care about her that much? Her head began swimming in new thoughts that engulfed her mind.

_Does Lloyd really like me, the way, I do? I really want to tell him… but what if I'm wrong? What if he doesn't like me that way? I- I don't know!_ Colette placed a hand to her forehead in an attempt to calm herself down and organize her confused thoughts and feelings. Noticing that Colette hadn't followed, he asked:

"Colette? Are you alright?" Lloyd gently asked. Colette looked up and met Lloyd's gaze and saw deep brown eyes that were so warm and gentle. Lloyd gazed back and saw crystal clear blue eyes that greatly surpassed the stars in beauty. He blushed. "Colette…" As he continued to stare into Colette's eyes, he was not aware of his actions – his hand began to caress the angel's cheeks.

Colette let out a small gasp of surprise; Lloyd's last action caught her completely off guard. Although Lloyd's action really surprised her, she felt _happy_ or something close to it. Colette couldn't explain why she was happy, but it seemed as if that word was the only way she could put her feelings into words. Noticing that a small smile began spreading across her cheeks, he pressed on – proceeding to lifting her chin up in preparation for a gentle kiss. Noticing what Lloyd intended to do, Colette's heart began hammering in her chest, blood surging throughout her body, causing her to cheeks to become as red as a ripe strawberry during the summer. _W-why is my head spinning? I feel like… like- _Colette began to think as her body slumped onto the ground. The last thing she could hear before the blackness completely seized her was the frantic cries of Lloyd calling her name.

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Please review! 


	5. A Fond Memory

Hey everyone! Thanks for all the reviews! I appreciate them all so much! I'm sorry it took so long to update, I had writer's block half the time and was on vacation. Anyways, enjoy the story!

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or any of the characters

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Lloyd paced up and down the length of the small room. Finally becoming aggravated by the swordsman's action, Raine cried out," Lloyd! Stop pacing, please." Lloyd looked up at her.

"…Sorry." Lloyd mumbled in a voice hardly audible. He had not meant to bother anyone; it's just that he was worried about the angel lying in the bed, completely unconscious. Another reason for the pacing was that Lloyd was unsure of what had really happened. Had Colette fainted because he tried to kiss her? Was it because the shock had overwhelmed her and caused her to be in her current condition? Lloyd shook his head, tears threatening to flow out of his chocolate-brown eyes. A moment later, a small figure appeared in the doorway.

"I brought the cold water and towels," Presea spoke as she walked into the room and stood beside Raine.

"Thank you, place it on the nightstand over there." Raine gestured to the small table that stood beside Colette's bed. Presea quickly complied and placed the tray on the small table. She then placed the cool towel on the angel's forehead. Noticing that Lloyd looked very worried, she walked over to him and said,

"Lloyd, there is no need to worry. Raine said that Colette is going to be fine – she just fainted from overexerting herself when she had a fever." Lloyd stared at Presea. He knew that the words she spoke were in fact the truth, but there was something that was restraining his mind from believing it. When Presea noticed that Lloyd wasn't answering, she took him by the arm and led him outside.

"W-where are we going?" Lloyd asked, as he was being led further and further away from Colette's room.

"You will see in a minute," Presea simply answered. A few minutes later, the two were standing outside a large gift shop. "If you buy something for Colette when she wakes up, she'll be really happy and know that you care. Then you'll probably feel better about what had happened." Lloyd grinned.

"Thanks Presea," Lloyd answered before he raced into the shop. Presea began smiling to herself before she headed in the opposite direction.

_Colette already likes you silly… you two just need a small push to get started in the right direction. _Presea then chuckled quietly. _It is funny how everyone knows that the two of them like each other… everyone but themselves. _

As Lloyd walked through the doorway of the shop, he couldn't help but feel amazed. On either side of him, there were shelves of merchandise piled high. Small stuffed animals, cards, toys, books, flowers, and nearly anything you could think of when it came to giving a gift to someone dear to you. After about five minutes of eyeing the items of sale and wondering what Colette would like, he stumbled upon the jewelry section. There were many things that he was sure Colette would really like, but one item caught his attention – a small gold heart-shaped locket that was small enough to be made into a charm if he made some minor adjustments. Lloyd smiled; _this would be perfect for the bracelet that Colette and I made together!_ "Excuse me," Lloyd called out to the attendant working at the counter.

"Yes, sir?" The attendant replied. She was a young woman (about 17) and had orange hair and a very warm disposition.

"Uh… I was wondering if I could see this particular item here," Lloyd said as he gestured to the locket. As the attendant took out her keys to unlock the display case, Lloyd couldn't help but notice that the girl kept staring at him.

"This one?"

"Yeah, how much is it?"

"Well," the attendant replied. "Normally 5,000 gald but for you, 2,500." The girl began batting her eyelashes and even managed to squeeze a wink in between.

_Shoot! Where's Zelos when you need him?_ Lloyd thought as the attendant began to edge closer and closer to Lloyd's face. As if on cue, the redheaded Chosen walked through the door and began walking in Lloyd's direction. _I'm saved!_

"Hey Lloyd!" Zelos cried as he began taking long strides to Lloyd.

"Hey Zelos, have you met uh…" Lloyd stuttered as he pointed to the girl.

"Kohana!" the attendant cried.

"Uh, yes! Kohana!" Lloyd said as he forced a smile.

"Hey, I haven't seen this hunny before," Zelos replied as he leaned on the counter and began his usual flirting routine.

"Yeah well, I have to go, so…" Lloyd began. He quickly placed the money on the counter, grabbed the locket and ran - hoping that Zelos would keep Kohana away from him.

Raine sighed; treating people was a lot of hard work. "You've been working really hard, why don't you just take a small break?" Sheena suggested. "Colette's gonna be okay now." Raine shot Sheena a thankful look and slumped into the small armchair that was placed next to the door. It was true – Colette's face was no longer as red as it was before and her breathing was much more even now.

"Professor!" Lloyd cried as he burst in through the doorway. "Is Colette alright?" He leaned against the wall for support, panting.

"Yeah, she's going to be okay," Sheena replied as she turned her attention to Colette. Suddenly, Colette's hand began to move slightly and her eyes began to open. Lloyd quickly scrambled to his feet and ran to Colette's side. Raine laughed.

"Sheena, let's leave these two _lovebirds_ alone," Raine said teasingly as she and Sheena left the room. Lloyd blushed and turned his attention to Colette. Her eyes were now fully opened, the blue eyes shining brightly at the sight of the swordsman leaning over her bed.

"Colette!" Lloyd cried as he hugged Colette fiercely.

"Lloyd, I-" Colette began before Lloyd cut the embrace short and held her at an arms-distance.

"I was so worried about you… so worried," Lloyd said as small tears began forming in his eyes. Colette's eyes grew wide in amazement- Lloyd only once shed a tear in his entire life. Colette gazed at Lloyd as a memory from her childhood began to play in her mind…

Begin flashback

"Alright class, what day is it?" Raine asked her class.

"Mother's Day!" Everyone cried in unison, everyone that is, but a certain young boy in red. Raine smiled, overjoyed by her class's enthusiasm.

"Since it is Mother's Day," Raine began," We will all be making Mother's Day cards! Everything you need – paper, scissors, glue, tape, and miscellaneous items are on the back table." Raine walked over to her desk and sat down, not noticing that Lloyd was the only student who wasn't busying him or herself with the making of Mother's Day cards.

Colette, who was overexcited, grabbed a whole bunch of supplies (more than enough for 3 cards really) and sat next to Lloyd. "Oops… it looks like I've taken too much!" Colette said, a huge grin on her face. "Lloyd, why don't you take some and make a card for your mother?" Without meaning to, Colette had done it – she had hurt Lloyd emotionally. It wasn't so much that her words were mean or cruel or anything, it was more a long the lines of the fact that Lloyd didn't have a mother. It was quite hard for Lloyd really – seeing everyone getting picked up by their mothers and him having to walk through the forest alone, living with a father while others had mothers _and_ fathers, and etc…

Although Lloyd's mother had died while he was still a mere toddler barely capable of retaining memory, he felt that something in his life was missing… something, like a mother. Lloyd abruptly stood up from his seat and dashed out of the classroom and out the school building. Colette made a small noise, clearly confused at what had happened. Although she was confused, she knew one thing – that her friend was in need of comforting. "Professor! Professor Raine!" Colette cried out as she thrust her hand in the air.

Looking up from her desk, Raine answered, "Yes Colette?"

"Um, uh, you see…" Colette stammered. "Uh, I… gotta go!" Before Raine could reply, Colette had raced outside. "Now, where can I find Lloyd?" Colette wondered out loud. As she began walking outside around the school, Colette could hear heavy breathing. Following the source of the sound, Colette found Lloyd sitting on the floor all scrunched up. "Lloyd?"

Lloyd looked up at Colette, visible tears sitting on the brim of his eyes – ready to leak at a moment's notice. "What do you want?" Colette flinched – Lloyd's voice sounded so cold, when he normally sounded like an optimistic little boy.

"I'm really sorry if I had said something to hurt you," Colette said ass she sat down on the ground next to him. "I didn't mean to."

"I know you didn't mean to," Lloyd began. "But…" he trailed off, drawing circles in the dirt. "It's weird not having a mom. I don't know if you'd understand though." Colette's eyes softened.

"I know what it's like, to not have a mom…" Lloyd's eyes widened.

"What do you mean?" This whole time, he never thought that Colette did not have a mother – he always left as soon as the Raine dismissed them so that he wouldn't have to see the other children's complete families, unlike his own.

"My mother died about two years ago, when I was four years old. I can't really remember her very well since I was so little, but I do miss her. But I don't let it get to me… I still have a father who loves me very much and a grandmother who makes the best cookies!" The two children laughed.

"Then, whom were you making that card for?"

"Huh? Oh, my grandmother, Phaidra." Suddenly Colette had an idea. "Why don't you celebrate Mother's Day with my family? My grandmother is still a mother after all. And, I'm sure your father won't mind because it isn't Father's Day."

Lloyd smiled. "You know what Colette?"

"No, what?"

"You're the best!" Lloyd screamed as he hugged her.

End Flashback

"Lloyd, you know what you are?" Colette suddenly cried.

"Hmm? What?"

"The best!" Colette cried as she gave Lloyd a fierce hug. Lloyd smiled, clearly he was reminiscing about that time in his childhood as well. A moment later, Raine stepped in through the open doorway and smiled. Noticing that someone was watching them, Lloyd turned around to find Raine standing there, _grinning_. Lloyd and Colette broke their embrace short, red blush on both of their cheeks.

"I'm sorry to cut your time short, but I'm supposed to give Colette some sleeping medicine – it'll help her recover faster." Raine spoke as she handed Colette a glass of water and some medicine. Colette quickly complied, taking the medicine immediately as soon as she received it. "The medicine is very effective, so I'll be leaving now. Lloyd, you have to leave too, Colette needs her rest."

"Okay, Professor," Lloyd sadly said – he didn't want to leave Colette's side. "Here, before I go, I want you to have this." Lloyd reached into the small bag and placed the locket into Colette's open hand. Colette managed to smile at Lloyd before she drifted asleep, a smile spread across her face and the locket in her closed hand. As Lloyd walked towards the door, he whispered, "I love you," before silently shutting it behind him.

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Please review!

-Hari

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	6. Fireplace Confessions

Hari-Chan here to bring you chapter six of It's All In The Stars! Sorry it took so long to update! There might be some slight OCness of Colette and Lloyd because of how my plot is supossed to be... but enjoy it anyway! I also apologize if this chapter is kinda short... it was an idea I had to add to my story, an idea that came to me at 11:58 at night.

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or any of the characters in it.

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Colette woke up from her peaceful slumber, feeling relaxed and fully rested. She sat up and stretched, the smile that Lloyd had placed on her face still there. Suddenly, Colette remembered that the small locket was still in her closed hand and slowly lifted her fingers one by one - so that the small treasure could be revealed slowly. The golden heart gave off a slight glow, although it was clearly dark outside. Colette lifted the covers off of herself and walked over to the window, shivering slightly. There was snow falling everywhere, as soft and light as powdered sugar falls onto pancakes (um… sorry for the bad simile or what ever, this is what happens when you don't have school to stimulate you). Colette smiled; thinking about the night that she and Lloyd drank hot chocolate together and then gazed at the stars.

Colette abruptly stood up, walked over to her bed, grabbed a blanket, and walked out of her room and into the spare room that the party had paid for by mistake. The room had a large window, a soft sofa, a bed, and a couple of other simple furnishings. She sighed as she placed her blanket on the chair near the fireplace, and lit the logs that lay already placed and ready to be lit incase a person wanted to enjoy a cozy fire.

Colette sat on the floor and leaned against the sofa, blanket tightly wrapped around her for extra warmth. After a while of looking at the memorizing flames, Colette drifted off to sleep yet again, the dancing flames painting shadows on her pale face.

* * *

Lloyd sat up in his bed, unable to sleep – thoughts consumed of Colette. After finally admitting that he loved her, Lloyd found it harder and harder to keep the Chosen of Sylvarant out of his mind, his thoughts. "I can't sleep," Lloyd said to himself, out loud. "Maybe a walk will help…" Lloyd got up out of his bed and walked out into the hallway, and noticed a faint glow coming from the extra room. Lloyd pondered for a moment, wondering whether or not he should investigate. Finally, curiosity got the better of him and Lloyd walked in the room, unprepared for who he was about encounter. 

Lloyd walked into the empty room to find that a fire had been lit. _Strange…_ thought Lloyd as he walked further in and found Colette fast asleep on the floor. Lloyd stood there for a moment, memorized by the shadows swirling around Colette's face. "Colette"… Lloyd whispered. He was tempted to stroke her soft cheek, but controlled himself – he did not want a repeat of what had happened earlier that day… but still. Lloyd reached out, his hand quivering, when Colette's head tilted to one side. Lloyd's hand immediately retreated.

Colette opened her eyes and blinked. "L-Lloyd? What are you doing here?"

"Uh… I couldn't sleep so," Lloyd began. He didn't know what to say.

"It's okay, I would like it if you kept me company." Colette smiled at Lloyd who in turn, smiled back and sat down next to her. After a moment of silence, Colette asked," Lloyd?"

"Yes?"

"I was wondering, do you like m- want some tea?"

"What?" Lloyd stared a Colette in disbelief – where had this question come from?

"Tea, you want some?" Colette turned red.

"Um, yeah, sure."

"Okay! I'll be back in a second." Colette stood up, her face red, tears about to burst out of her eyes. When Lloyd was out of earshot, Colette burst into tears; letting the salty bitter tears flow freely down her cheeks. "Why?" Colette screamed in frustration. "WHY? Why can't I tell Lloyd how I feel? The mood was perfect, and yet I asked him if he wanted tea!" Colette slapped her forehead, wiping her tears with her sleeves. She then fumbled around the kitchen until two hot cups of tea were ready. _There's no point in crying, Lloyd will only wonder why and I'll have to explain myself,_ Colette thought as she walked down the hallway and back into the room. _I have to put on my cheerful face…_ "I'm back!"

"What took you so long, Colette?" Lloyd gently asked.

"Nothing! It's just…I couldn't find the tea leaves!" Colette replied, a fake smile plastered onto her face. She sat down and poured the tea into the two tiny china cups she had found in the kitchen. Before she could hand the cup to Lloyd, he grabbed the cup and handed it to her, smiling the whole time. Colette took it into her trembling hands, sipping at the hot, steaming liquid. Lloyd suddenly picked up Colette's blanket and wrapped it around her, causing Colette to let out a small gasp.

"Colette, if there's something on your mind, you can tell me."

"There's nothing on my mind! Really!"

"You always act over-cheerful when something' wrong, please… tell me." Colette blinked, surprised by Lloyd's concern. The two sat in silence sipping their tea, staring at the flames.

"Lloyd, I-" Lloyd placed a finger to her lip, silencing her.

"Colette, I know there's something on your mind… but if you're not ready, you don't have to tell me. I will always be here for you, don't worry, you can tell me anytime." As Lloyd was speaking, he hadn't noticed that the angel was resting her head on his shoulder, listening to the steady rhythm of his heart; listening to every tender word that Lloyd uttered out of his mouth, feeling better with each word he spoke."We've been friends forever and you're very special to m-" Lloyd looked down and found that Colette was fast asleep. A smile spread across his face as Lloyd gently moved the hair away from her face. _It must be really late… what's this?_

Lloyd noticed that something was on Colette's cheek… something **shiny**. He gently wiped the substance from her face, only to find out that it was a tear. "A tear…why would Colette be crying?" Lloyd pondered for a moment, then it hit him - Colette wasn't trying to offer him tea at all. She was… trying to ask him if he liked her.Lloyd turned his attention tothe sleeping angel who was resting her head on his shoulder. _Colette…_ _I really do love you, I do._ Lloyd thought happily as he drifted off to sleep. _I really do… and someday, I'll have the courage to tell you out loud...

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_

I'm sorry if this chapter isn't very good, I really am! If it's not up to standards, let me know and I'll edit it and try to make it better. If you like it let me know, any thoughts, feel free to let me know as well... all you gotta do is push the little button at the end of this page! Please?


	7. A Christmas Wish

Hello! I've finally updated! ...sorry for taking so long.

Disclaimer: Yeah, don't own Tales of Symphonia... but I wish I did.

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The sun had begun to rise –sending its golden rays across the pitch-black sky, adding beautiful colors, and telling all the living creatures that it was almost morning. Lloyd opened his eyes slowly and looked outside the window; how long had he been asleep? The young swordsman looked to his left and saw Colette there, fast asleep. A smile spread across his face as he sat up slowly so that he would not wake the sleeping angel. Lloyd stood up and tucked Colette in before heading out the door and into the lounge where something pink and red suddenly popped out and screamed: "HEEEYY LLOYD!"

"Gah!" Lloyd shouted in surprise as he fell back on the floor. "Z-Zelos?"

"Guess what day it is?" Tethe'alla's Chosen questioned.

"I don't know, what?"

"It's Christmas Eve! You know what that means, dontcha?" Lloyd blinked.

"Presents? Spending time with your friends and family?"

"Yeah, and…" Zelos paused for dramatic effect. "PARTY!" Not long after Zelos uttered the word 'party' from his mouth, Sheena came out of the room rubbing her eyes sleepily. "Ah, my voluptuous hunny is awake." Sheena glared at him.

"I'm only awake because your yelling woke me up!" Sheena spat.

"It looks like somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning!" Zelos replied, in a teasing voice. To Lloyd, it looked as if Sheena had reached her breaking point – her hands were in fists, her eyes stuck on Zelos, and the most obvious of all… Sheena's eyes seemed to have a blazing fire in there. Lloyd stepped back, the memory of what had happened still fresh in his mind – the terrible punishment of anyone who provoked her… it wasn't nearly as bad as Raine's punishments, but was still quite painful

Trying to cause Sheena's anger to subside, Lloyd asked," Sheena… is it really Christmas Eve? And are we really going to have a party?"

"Yes, it is. A party? Who said anything about a party?" Sheena asked. From the corner of her eye, she could see Zelos waving… suggesting that he said that they were going to have a party.

"What's with all the noise?" Regal questioned as he came out of his room, looking just as sleepy as Sheena had.

"We're gonna have a party because it's Christmas Eve!" Zelos cried, thrusting his fist into the air. Everyone glared at Zelos, who shrank back into the corner of the sofa.

"A Christmas party?" Regal stroked his chin in thought. "That actually wouldn't be a bad idea. But isn't it kind of late? Most stores are probably closed at this time of day and year."

"Don't worry!" Zelos cried as he climbed out of his corner. "The great Zelos Wilder has many contacts in Meltokio. I am the Chosen One after all." Sheena rolled her eyes, Lloyd coughed, and Regal stood there politely. Then, there was an awkward silence.

"Good morning everyone!" Raine and Genis called as they came out of their room looking fully rested and cheerful.

"Guess what?" Lloyd shouted. "We're having a party!" Raine and Genis' eyes lit up at the mention of the word 'party'.

"Oh, we must buy decorations!" Raine shouted. "And we must have a theme! How about… a costume party celebrating the Triet Desert Ruins? We could all dress up as archaeologists, and –"

"NO…" Everyone replied in response of Raine's idea. Genis sighed.

"There she goes again," Genis said. "I swear, Raine would probably marry the ruins if it were legal…"

"GENIS!" Raine cried as her hand went flying through the air and collided with Genis' head.

"Owwwww…" Genis moaned, his hands over his head.

"Actually, the party already has a theme. It's a Christmas party." Regal said.

"Oh…" Raine replied, a tone of sadness in her voice. A moment later, Colette and Presea came into the lounge.

"Good morning everyone!" Colette greeted in her usual cheerful tone. "I overheard we're having a party!"

"Yes, that is correct," Raine replied. "We'll need quite a few things such as: decorations and food."

"I know!" Colette cried. "We can divide up into groups to do the shopping!" Everyone nodded in agreement to Colette's idea. Colette then began writing everyone's names on pieces of paper and the group tasks as well. When she had finished, Sheena took the papers from her and stuffed them into a bag.

"Since Colette came up with the idea, why don't we let her draw?" Sheena suggested as she stood up and held the bag above Colette's head.

"Okay," Colette replied as she dug her hand into the bag and pulled out a slip. It read: **shopping group**. Then, Colette pulled out the following names: Genis, Regal, Zelos, and Lloyd.

"I guess that means the other group consists of myself, Colette, Raine, and Sheena," Presea replied. "Which is the cooking group…" Everyone stared at Raine.

"W-what?" Raine stuttered, obviously uncomfortable from all the attention.

"Remember the last time we tried your cooking?" Lloyd shouted. "I nearly died!" Raine clenched her fists in anger and glared at Lloyd.

"Oh yeah!" Zelos cried. "I remember that! We were camping somewhere near… well I don't remember. But anyway, Raine did the cooking and Lloyd took a bite and started gagging and choking, and spitting…" Zelos continued, oblivious to obvious signs of Raine's anger. Regal and Genis (who aren't as… let's just say dense) noticed that Raine was becoming angry and shouted,

"Let's get started on our shopping!" Lloyd and Zelos stared at them.

"Okay…" Lloyd replied as he followed them out the door. "See you guys later!"

"Heeeey!" Zelos desperately cried. "Wait for me!" And without another word, he dashed out the door. There was an awkward silence once again.

"Well, now that the guys are gone," Sheena began. "We can start cooking for our party. Raine, do you have any cooking books?" Raine nodded. "Can you get them?" Raine complied and ran to her room.

"Why don't we start the preparations with the ingredients we already have?" Presea suggested.

"Okay!" Colette replied as they walked into the kitchen. Not long after, Raine came bounding into the kitchen with two books entitled: _The Art of Cooking_ and _The Guide to Cooking for People Who's Cooking is Disliked_.

"…Raine? Why do you have books like that?" Sheena wondered out loud.

"THEY"RE PRESENTS!" Raine cried defensively. Again, the awkward silence followed.

"Moving on," Sheena said. "There should be enough ingredients to make a simple cake in here…" Sheena rummaged through the cupboards until she found some eggs, flour, milk, sugar, and butter. And so, the girls began to make a cake (and with Raine's skills, attempt to make a cake).

* * *

Meanwhile, "What are we shopping for again?" Lloyd asked.

"Streamers, balloons, and food," Regal replied as he looked at the list Sheena had given him.

"Why don't we split up?" Genis suggested. "That way, we can finish sooner."

"Good idea, I'll go with Lloyd!" Zelos cried.

"I'll pass on that idea," Lloyd replied as he took several steps away from Zelos.

"Well, since there is more food to buy, why don't we let Zelos pick out the decorations while we buy the food? We can meet back here in 30 minutes," Regal suggested.

"Okay!" Everyone yelled as they ran off in different directions.

"…Why do I even bother?" Regal said. "I didn't even tell them what was on the list besides streamers…"

* * *

"NO! Raine! Curry powder doesn't go in cake mix!" Sheena cried as she grabbed Raine's wrist.

"Why not? It will add an interesting element to the cake! Instead of just sweet, it will be sweet and spicy!" Raine cried.

"I've got the milk!" Colette triumphantly cried as she ran across the kitchen and tripped on, well… nothing. As Colette fell on the floor, the carton of milk was sent flying across the room, but luckily was caught by Presea.

"Hehehe, sorry," Colette said as she stood up and brushed the dirt off her outfit. Presea then walked over and poured the milk into the bowl.

"Okay guys, I think I can do the rest," Sheena said.

* * *

"Okay, we're finally done," Regal said. "We can get back to the inn now."

"Hey, why am I the one carrying all of this stuff?" Zelos cried, his face hidden by the large bags he was forced to carry.

"Because you volunteered," Genis replied.

"I did not! Lloyd volunteered me!" Zelos cried. Lloyd grinned sheepishly as everyone walked over to the rheairds.

* * *

"Are they back yet?" Raine said impatiently. "They've been gone for nearly 2 hours…"

"On the positive side, our cake is nearly done. It's something they won't expect and we can surprise them tonight," Colette said in a cheerful tone.

"Yeah, I'm sure they'll love that," Sheena added as she pulled the cake out of the oven. Immediately, pleasant aromas began filling the kitchen and leaking out to the main doors – sweet succulent aromas that caused everyone to begin salivating.

"Wow Sheena," Colette began. "The cake smells really good… is it a Mizuho recipe?"

"Yes," Sheena replied as she placed the cake on a cooling rack. "A woman in my village taught me how to make it." Just then, the sound of a doorknob turning could be heard.

"I think they're back," Presea said. "Let's hide the cake." Presea then took the cake off the cooling rack and placed it back into the oven, leaving the door slightly open so that it could cool off without being seen.

"We're back!" Genis called loudly.

"Something smells good…" Lloyd said slowly as he was enjoying the aroma that was wafting from the kitchen. "…Hey! I thought you said you guys didn't have enough ingredients to make stuff!"

"We didn't," Raine answered as she stepped out of the kitchen. "We found just enough to make a small something, it's barely enough for a party."

"Hey! Can someone help me with these?" Zelos cried from behind about 5 bags. Regal quickly took some of the bags and placed them in the kitchen, Zelos trailing behind him struggling under the weight of the bags.

"Lloyd? What are you holding behind your back?" Colette inquired.

"Uh… um, nothing!" Lloyd cried as he quickly stuffed a small bag behind him. "I'm not hiding anything behind my back."

"Yes you are," Colette replied. "There's something there…" Noticing that Lloyd was having trouble, he walked behind Lloyd and took the small parcel and began walking to Lloyd's room.

"You owe me for saving you this time," Genis whispered as he walked by. Lloyd gave a sigh of relief.

_Thanks Genis… I'll pay you back, I swear_ Lloyd thought as he walked over to the kitchen. "You guys need help in there?"

"No, I think we've got it," Sheena replied as she made hand signals for the girls to return to the kitchen. "You guys go decorate the room…"

"You heard the hunny!" Zelos cried as he walked out of the kitchen with another large bag in his arms. "It's time to decorate!"

"Wow, they sure bought a lot of food!" Colette cried as she eyed all the ingredients that lay on the table.

"Yes, they did," Presea added. "Do we really need this much?"

"Of course! If were gonna have a party tonight, we have to have enough food for a feast!" Sheena cried enthusiastically. "So, here's the recipes… let's get started!"

"I think the wreath should go here," Genis said as he held a large wreath, nearly twice his size. He began staggering under the weight.

"Here, let me help," Regal said as he took the wreath from the small half-elf boy and hung it up where Genis had intended to place it.

"The mistletoe goes right… here," Zelos cheered as he hung it right next to the door.

"Why?" Lloyd asked while he was hanging garlands around the room.

"You don't know?" Zelos casually replied. "Well, I'm not gonna tell you. Just wait and see…"

"Colette! Those cookies smell so good!" Raine cried as Colette pulled a tray of hot cookies out of the oven. Colette giggled.

"Thanks! Your um looks… what is again?" Colette asked as she craned her neck to see what Raine was 'cooking'.

"It's a surprise," Raine simply answered.

"Okay Professor…" Colette said as she began to put frosting on her cookies.

"I've finished!" Presea triumphantly cried as she held her dish up. "It's chicken wings and potato salad!"

"Great! Now, place it on the long table outside," Sheena said, not looking up from stirring the contents her bubbling pot.

"Now that were done," Regal began. "What do we do?" The boys sat there in silence.

"Let's go have a snowball fight!" Genis cried. "There's still plenty of snow outside!" Everyone but Lloyd nodded in agreement.

"I have to… take care of something," Lloyd said as he began walking towards his room.

"Are you taking care of _that_?" Genis asked teasingly. Lloyd blushed and Genis laughed.

"Well, see ya later Lloyd," Zelos said as he followed everyone out the door.

"Now, to take care of that gift…" Lloyd said to himself.

A few minutes later, "Yes! We're all done!" Sheena cried. "Let's go outside and take a small break…" Presea, Raine, and Colette gladly followed Sheena outside, exhausted from cooking all day.

"Wow, it looks like the boys really did a good job decorating," Raine said as she scanned the room. Bright red and green balloons were hanging on anything that you could hang things on, streamers were trailed everywhere, and a large wreath was hung in the center above the serving table.

"It looks like they left a streamer over there." Colette pointed to a small package that lay forgotten near the door. "Let me take care of that." As Colette walked to the package, Zelos came through the door. Colette stopped right under the mistletoe and stooped down to pick up the streamers. Zelos grinned.

"It looks like it's our lucky day, my little angel," Zelos smirked as he stood beneath the mistletoe next to Colette.

"Huh?" At that moment, Lloyd came out of his room, a smile on his face.

"Since were both under the mistletoe and were opposite genders, were supposed to kiss," Zelos said, his grin growing larger by the second. Lloyd stood there, his mouth agape (he doesn't know what to do… poor Lloyd).

"Zelos!" Sheena cried as she stomped over to where he stood. "You can't kiss Colette!" Sheena grabbed Zelos' hair again and began dragging him away from the mistletoe.

"Awww! But my hunny is over there! And, let go of my beautiful flawless hair!" Zelos protested.

"And I thought Zelos was stupid before…" Genis said to himself. _Isn't it obvious that he can't even give Colette a friendly kiss because Lloyd is right there? Not only that, but he knows Lloyd likes Colette… and I guess Zelos can't give friendly kisses, what was I thinking? _The young half-elf began laughing to himself. Zelos stood in the corner, whimpering as he began to untangle his hair.

"Well, were all done with our tasks…" Raine began, a smile on her face. Genis, who caught what his sister was trying to say, shouted:

"SO LET THE PARTY BEGIN!" and placed began to play some music. Everyone began helping himself or herself to the food and the party began…

"No! Zelos! Get away from me!" Were Sheena's defensive cries.

…_Zelos is obviously doing something perverted again_ Lloyd thought to himself.

"Lloyd? Are you okay?" Lloyd spun around to see Colette standing right next to him.

"Yeah, of course I am." Lloyd looked to his right to see that Genis was (once again unsuccessfully) trying to flirt with Presea and get her to like him.

"You seem so quiet tonight." Colette took a seat on the sofa right next to Lloyd.

"It's really nothing."

"Okay…" Suddenly, Lloyd had an idea.

"Colette?" She looked into Lloyd's eyes. "W-would you like to dance with me?" Colette was speechless, but gave Lloyd a smile. "I'll take that as a yes." Lloyd smiled back and took Colette's hand. The two walked into the middle of the room and began to dance to the quick beat of the song that was currently playing.

"Hey Raine," Sheena called. "Check out those two…" She gestured to the middle of the room where Lloyd and Colette were dancing. Raine smiled.

"Who do you think made the first move?"

"Probably Lloyd, I think Colette's too shy."

"You never know…" Raine replied as she turned her attention to the two. Lloyd and Colette were twirling around each other, huge smiles plastered on their faces. However, Raine noticed one thing – that Lloyd and Colette had a good steady rhythm going; and that they both looked _good _together.

Colette landed on the sofa, exhausted. Lloyd sat next to her, breathing heavily. "That was fun…" Colette commented.

"Yeah, we really should do that more often… dancing the night away." Just then, Lloyd remembered that he had to take care of Colette's surprise. "Um, I have to do something. I'm going to bed now, okay?" Lloyd smiled kindly.

"Okay, goodnight Lloyd." Lloyd walked down the hall and into his room. He rummaged around his stuff for a while until he came to a small present in red wrapping paper.

* * *

Later that night, Sheena and Colette walked into their room. "Colette, I bet you had fun tonight." Sheena smirked.

"Yes I did, the party was wonderful. Your curry was especially good."

"Thanks. But I was talking about you and Lloyd." Colette blushed a deep crimson.

"We just danced together, that's all."

"Yeah? You looked like you were in paradise. The look on your face was so passionate."

"I… well." Sheena laughed.

"Don't worry about it. Night." Sheena pulled the covers on herself and went to sleep. Colette walked over to her bed and followed suit.

"Lloyd…" Colette whispered to herself before falling asleep. "Thank you for tonight."

The door creaked open quite slowly, since Lloyd was afraid of waking the sleeping girls – it also isn't very good if he got caught sneaking into a girl's room; he also didn't want to sink to Zelos' level. Lloyd managed to sneak in the room and walk to Colette's bed. Then, he placed the small parcel by her pillow. "Merry Christmas, Colette." Lloyd whispered. Then, he summoned up all his courage and gave her a small peck on the forehead before exiting the room as quickly as he had came.

Colette's eyes fluttered open. _I could've sworn I hear Lloyd's voice._ Colette thought. She sat up and noticed the a horribly wrapped package that lay next to her pillow and began to peel the multiple layers of wrapper off slowly. When all the layers had come off, Colette had a small plush puppy laying on her pillow. Colette smiled, and noticed that there was a small card. When she opened it, the card read:

_Dear Colette,_

_Merry Christmas. I know that we all kind of agreed to not get each other presents but I just had to get one for you. I know it isn't much, but I picked it out just for you. You're a really special person to me Colette. _

_-Lloyd_

By the time Colette had finished reading the card, she was blushing. _Lloyd really does care about me, or more than I thought he did._ She looked down at the adorable puppy laying on her pillow and blushed even deeper when she noticed that it had a small metal heart on its collar. The angel yawned – it really was getting quite late. Colette held her puppy close to her and fell asleep, thinking about how much Lloyd meant to her and how she would always treasure the plush dog; merely because it was a present from her favorite person in both worlds.

* * *

Hope you liked it. I just had to do the Christmasy thing! (it's a great chance to add fluffiness). Please review, it'll only take a couple of seconds!

-Hari


	8. Loosing it is an Understatement

Hi everyone! I'm sorry it took me so long to update... but I had school and everything (not to mention writer's block). I wrote this chapter on a random impulse to add a little bit of humor to the story. I'd like to apologize in advance for any extreme OCness you mayb encounter.

You have been warned.

* * *

"Wait, where are we going again?"

"Lloyd? Is there anything you can actually remember?" Genis said, a small smile on his face. _I shouldn't be surprised though, it is LLOYD were talking about…_ Genis chuckled softly to himself. Lloyd glared at the small mage with narrowed eyes, which caused Genis to instinctively take cover and shield his head with his arms.

"Lloyd, we're all going to Mizuho, remember?" Colette answered, completely oblivious to the small boy trembling behind her.

"That's right. I have something I wanna show everyone," Sheena added.

"Is it there a _special _something for a special _someone?_" Zelos asked Sheena, a large devious grin on his face.

Sheena responded with a flat "No" and promptly smacked Zelos upside his head, leaving a large, red handprint on him. The group continued in silence, for fear of another small quarrel with the possibility of the outcome where someone would be on the floor writhing with pain, kind of like how Zelos would be had he attempted to bother Sheena once more. After several silent moments, they had arrived at Sheena's village – Mizuho, where none other than Orochi greeted them.

"Sheena!" the ninja called as he strode across the village to meet his friends. After several seconds of smiles and greetings, Lloyd grew impatient (doesn't he always?).

"So, why are we here?!" he burst out. All eyes were on the young swordsman, who flushed a bright red and looked away.

"You have everything I've asked for, right?" Sheena inquired. Orochi replied with a short nod and walked towards the chief's house. "Alright everyone! Gather inside the chief's house and I'll – ". Before she could finish, everyone spare herself, Regal, and Raine had stampeded into the small house. "Why do I even bother?" Sheena cried out to no one in particular.

Once everyone was seated comfortably in the small room, Sheena stood up in front of the group and cleared her throat. "Everyone, I brought you all here because it's winter. And -"…

"That's why you brought us here?" Lloyd shouted defiantly as he jumped to his feet. "Because it's winter? I mean we could come here anytime and you drag us all the way here because it's winter? What a – " Much to the relief of everyone, Raine promptly landed a punch on the side of Lloyd's head. Lloyd then crumpled to the floor in pain.

"Please continue, Sheena," Raine calmly stated as if nothing had happened. As Sheena looked up, she could've swore that everyone scooted a couple inches away from the teacher.

"Uh, yes. It's winter here in Mizuho, the winter brings us something special."

"Something special?" Colette inquired, her facial expressions completely shrouded in thought. "Like Genis' cookies?" Genis laughed and blushed.

"No, Colette. I meant the winter sunrise. When the snow is perfectly white and the sunrises, the sight is breath taking. Mizuho is the only place in _both_ worlds where this phenomena occurs," Sheena said in a matter-of-fact kind of tone. "Even if it was snowy and the sun rose in another location, you wouldn't see the same results." Raine froze and looked as if she were in a trance.

"Oh no, " Genis sighed. Lloyd looked at him.

"Is she…?" Lloyd began. Genis gravely nodded and Lloyd's face paled. He leaned over to where Regal sat and whispered: "Raine is crazy about things like that. RUN FOR IT!"

"GO!" Genis screamed as he followed Lloyd out the door and into the village. "Run everyone! RUN!" Presea stood up, bewildered.

_Why is Genis asking us to run? I don't sense any danger…_ Presea thought.

"Okay…" Zelos remarked, dragging out the last syllable out. "That was weird, even for those two." Raine began to shake slightly and Colette's eyes widened, as the message her childhood friends screamed became evident – the Professor was going into her… _Ruin Mode_. Colette nervously giggled and stood up and began inching her way to the door.

"Where are you going my little angel?" Zelos asked.

"I just need some fresh air!" Colette replied quickly as she bolted out the door leaving Zelos and everyone else clearly confused. Raine's violent shaking suddenly became more violent and she couldn't contain it any longer. She jumped to her feet and grabbed Sheena by her shirt.

"Ah! Raine! W-what are you doing?" Sheena cried out in shock.

"Where is this place?" Raine yelled, her voice trembling with enthusiasm and impatience. "WHERE?!" Sheena looked into Raine's eyes for a moment – instantly regretting it. Raine's eyes were practically _glowing_ with anticipation and well… looked just plain scary.

* * *

Meanwhile…

"Colette!" Genis yelled happily as he saw the angel bounding across the village to meet them. Lloyd smiled.

_So she got the message after all… I'm glad. She's saved._ Lloyd thought as he waved to his friend.

"You got out in time!"

"Uh-huh!" Colette happily proclaimed. "The Professor was about to loose it." About to loose it, Colette? I don't think that "loosing it" is quite the right description in this case. She lost it a long time ago when she decided to take Lloyd in as her student. She _lost it_ when she thought that she could put anything into Lloyd's mind. This is not _loosing it_. This is going insane.

"The author is right," Genis said to his friends. "I have to go save everyone before they are murdered."

"Ohhh, good call," Lloyd replied. Genis gave Lloyd a look that said, "I know" and began running back to the house with Colette wishing him good luck in the background.

"I hope we get Genis back alive," Lloyd said to Colette. The blonde nodded fiercely.

"Raine!" Sheena cried, trying not to stare into Raine's eyes. "I promise you, we'll go there soon and –"

"No!" Raine cried. "Soon is not soon enough. That place is a historical sight! I've read about it in all the history books and I must see it for myself!" Raine let out some very freaky hysterical laughter and she continued to glare at Sheena. At that moment when Genis stepped in through the door, it looked as if his sister was about to commit murder.

"Little Brat!" Zelos yelled. "Go in there and save Sheena!" Genis glared at Zelos who shrunk into the corner. "Raine," Genis began as he took a hold of Raine's sleeve. "Sheena promises that we'll get there in a while okay?" Raine submissively nodded and let go of the ninja and walked over to Zelos.

"Hey Genis!" the frightened Chosen cried. Genis looked over his shoulder and discovered that Raine was glaring at him.

"I'll leave her to you," Genis replied, laughing. He turned to Sheena, Regal, and Presea, who were sitting in the corner; their eyes as wide as teacups. "Ah, sorry. I didn't want for you to have to see Raine like this." Genis apologized. "She's been like this since she was a little kid, when we were taken to a history museum as a reward for being good."

When Genis had taken Raine outside, Regal said: "That was… unusual at the very least." His fellow Tethe'Allalians nodded in agreement.

"I- I think we should pack now and bring Raine up into the mountains before she has another… _episode_." Presea stated. The other three nodded silently, still shocked at what they had seen.

* * *

Yeah, sorry if it was a bit short. But please , take 3 seconds out of your day to leave one little review!

-Hari

Oh, any suggestions would be appreciated to help prevent writers block... that also helps keep the chapters flowing in quite frequently too.


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